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Yunkai
Yunkai, dubbed the Yellow City, is one of the Slaver Cities on the eastern coast of Slaver's Bay in central Essos. To the west lies the island of Yaros. Yunkai is one hundred leagues north of Astapor and fifty leagues south of Meereen. The city's main export is slaves, specifically bed slaves. Their emblem is a harpy: a woman's torso, wings of a bat instead of arms, legs of an eagle and a scorpion's tail. Its talons grasp a whip and an iron collar. Yunkai is made of yellow bricks, with crumbling walls and tall, stepped pyramids, defended by crossbowmen and slingers, similar to Astapor. They are ruled by slavers, once again like the other cities of Slaver's Bay, the wealthiest and most powerful of these slavers called the Wise Masters. The highborn of Yunkai wear linen skirts and tunics dyed a deep yellow and cloaks sewn with copper disks. Because their oiled hair is twisted into towers and shapes, they wear taller helms to preserve the styling. They ride horses and camels. City Layout The city of Yunkai is split into four distinct districts, separated from each other by the great roads that pass through the city. The Sand District Found in the northwestern aspect of the city, the Sand District is home to both the harbour of the city and the primary slave markets, positioned conveniently so that new arrivals upon the slaver galleys may be auctioned quickly and efficiently, before being transported elsewhere as appropriate. Also found within the Sand District is the Yunkai'i equivalent of Astapor's Plaza of Punishment, although it is not as extensive as its sister city, by the inherent nature of the slaves traded. Whereas the Astapori specialise in training slave warriors, most famously the Unsullied, the Yunkai'i prefer the meeker kind, in the form of bed slaves, and as such rebellion is less common. The pyramids of the Houses of Arra and Shelk are found on the edges of the District. The Citrine District Famed for the five fighting pits found within it, the Citrine District is the most populous of all the districts, made busier still by a myriad of markets, residential areas and brothels. At any one time, a minimum of two of the pits will be in use, whether it be gladiatorial battles with men or beast, chariot races, or executions. The largest of these are the Harpy's Pit, which is large enough to contain Sroknehl's Pit, Lallha's Pit and the Sandstone Pit inside it. The other pit, and the second largest is Ozlir's Pit, named for a legendary Ghiscari general in the days of of Old Ghis. The pyramids of the Houses of Ahlaq, Eraz, Myraq and Rhaezn are all found within the Citrine District. The Amber District The Amber District is known for two things, the Harpy's Bazaar and the Halls of Silk. * The Harpy's Bazaar - Beneath a sprawling field of brightly coloured fabrics, shielding its visitors from the intense light of the midday sun, the Harpy's Bazaar sells goods from both the Free Cities and the Seven Kingdoms to the west, and the lands of Qarth, Yi-Ti and Asshai-by-the-Shadow to the far east. Nearly everything in the Known World can be found to those with the patience to seek their quarry, and the coin to satisfy that who sells it, but no slave may exchange hands beneath the motley of cloth and silk. Such purchases must be made in the markets of the Sand District. * The Halls of Silk - Home of the numerous brothels and pillowhouses in which the bedslaves for which Yunkai is famed, the Halls of Silk are where those decided attractive enough to serve within them are taught the the way of the seven sighs and the sixteen seats of pleasure. The pyramids of the Houses of Zherzyn, Faez and Qaggaz are all within the Amber District. The Golden District Home of the Royal Pyramid, the name given the largest pyramid in the city, and home to the House of Yunzak, the Golden District is off-limits to most of the occupants of the city. Nestled in the northern aspect of the centre of Yunkai, the streets of the District are guarded by patrolling Unsullied Warriors, and only those with business with members of the House of Yunzak are permitted to pass through the sandstone walls that surround the District. The Graces Temple of the Graces The Temple of the Graces is huge structure with numerous bronze-capped towers that houses the Graces, priestesses of the Harpy. The Graces are separated into orders, each with its own colour. * The Green Grace - the smallest but most prestigious of the orders, there is only a single Green Grace in each city, as they are the priestesses of prophecy. It is not uncommon for a Wise Master to consult with the Green Grace before making any major business decisions, and the Wise Masters as a whole will often consult the Green Grace before going to war. * The Blue Graces - called the Healing Hands of the Harpy by the residents of Ghiscar, the Blue Graces serve much as the maesters bearing a silver chain-link do in Westeros. The Sapphire Quarters of the Temple of the Graces is a centre of medicine for primarily the wealthy of the city, but the Priestesses go out into the city on a weekly basis to serve those unable to make the journey. * The Red Graces - the most numerous of the Graces, Red Graces are priestesses of love, fertility, and sex. It is not unheard of for pillowslaves that have gained the favor of a Wise Master to be taken in by the Red Graces. Red Graces are consulted most commonly by the wives of Wise Masters who are attempting to conceive, and they sometimes grant private “prayer sessions” to Wise Masters. * The White Graces - the White Graces are responsible for the day-to-day worship of the Harpy and the other Gods of Ghis. They hold important positions in all religious festivals, and are often of noble birth, but deemed unsuitable for the pleasure palaces. * The Pink Graces - sometimes known as the Graces of the Graces, the Pink Graces serve to support the other organisations in their order, most prominently through recruitment from the families of the Masters of Yunkai, Astapor and Meereen, but also as overseers of the guardsmen dedicated to the protection of the Green Grace. * The Purple Graces - with the exception of the Green Grace, the Purple Graces are the smallest group of Graces. This is because the Purple Graces are priestesses to the slaves. In practice, they perform many of the same functions as the White Graces, except for the enslaved of Yunkai, as the slaves are not permitted to attend the same religious services as the Wise Masters. * The Gold Graces - dedicated to service of the Wise Masters in death as the other Graces are in life, the Gold Graces preside over the funeral rites of the nobleborn of the city, marking them with a vertical band of gold dye from hair-line to chin so that Hlaatep, The Seer knows them to be worthy of his judgement. Timeline of Events * 43BA - In the half a decade following the destruction of Vaes Dothrak, the last of the true Khalasars are hunted down by Sarnori, Qartheen, Ghiscari and Ibbenese scouting parties. * 86AA - The First War for Yaros starts in the latter end of 86AA, with both Astapor and Yunkai fighting for dominion over the small island in Slaver's Bay. The Astapori general Qandan zo Ullhor delivers a scathing victory against the Yunkai'i at the Battle of Silt Bank, and the Red City's rule over the isle remains uncontested for a hundred years. * 179AA - The Second War for Yaros erupts into existence following brewing conflict between the Slaver's Cities of Astapor and Yunkai. As of the start of 179AA, Astapor claimed dominion over the small island between the two cities, much to the ire of the Wise Masters. For the past years, the Wardens of Yaros had started to tax the slave galleys passing by the isle, most of which were bound for Yunkai, carrying prospective bedslaves from the Basilisk Isles. Disgruntled, the Wise Masters of Yunkai hire an army of sellswords, ferrying them to the isle with the Yellow Cities fleet. The ensuring fighting ravages the isle, and results in the destruction of the major settlement on the isle, Vochar. In the end, an agreement of non-aggressive is signed, and both cities relinquish their claim over the isle. * 226AA - The Third War for Yaros fought between Astapor and Yunkai occurs. Having hired Tolosi slingers, the armies of the Red City strike suddenly to cease control of the largely uninhabited isle, and begin to fortify, knowing that their actions would garner a response. When the Yunkai'i arrive a moon and a half later, they do so with a fleet bolstered by the Meereenese, who would prefer the isle to be in the hands of the less militant Yunkai'i compared to the Astapori. When Commander Azhis mo Maar is slain, the Astapori are forced into retreat, and the Yunkai'i claim dominion over the isle. * 249AA - Conflicts start to brew between Yunkai and Astapor once again over the occupation of the isle of Yaros. The Fourth War for Yaros starts when Astapori warships land upon the isle, seeking to eject the Yunkai'i settlers lingering upon the isle following the Third War two and a half decades prior. Bolstered by the sellsail company The Three Sails, the Yunkai'i navy manages to throw back the Astapori advance, securing their dominion over Yaros once again. * 266AA - Hearing of the ongoing conflict in Astapor, the Green Graces of Yunkai and Meereen denounce the House of Rhaohl, echoing the words of their Astapori counterpart. Noble Houses from both Yunkai and Meereen join the war on the side of the House of Erdaz and the Green Grace. The War of the Graces is considered to have truly begun. * 267AA - The Battle of the Worm is fought to the east of Astapor, between an army of Yunkai'i sellswords and the Unsullied of the House of Rhaohl and their allies. When the House of Ullhor arrives at the battlefield with the strength of their Unsullied army, the Yunkai'i force breaks, and flees north. Following reinforcements from Meereen, Yunkai once more marches south, meeting the armies of Ullhor and Rhaohl outside the walls of Astapor. Krazyn mo Rhaohl is betrayed however, when commander Hazkol mo Ullhor turns on him in the name of the Green Grace. The noble family of Rhaohl is ejected from the city in the aftermath, and flees with the last of their wealth to Hazdahn Mo. * 274AA - The Bedslave Riots started following the death of the Wise Master Graklol na Faez during a training session in the Halls of Silk. The two involved bedslaves are sentenced to death, despite protests that the Wise Master had complained of a pain in his chest before falling unresponsive. Several of the teachers within the Halls of Silk rush in the defence of the bedslaves, stirring conflict. When no change to the sentencing occurs, riots fill the streets around the pillowhouses, and a number of Masters are slain by their bedslaves. The Wise Masters are quick in their response, opting to purge the Hall of Silk in its entirety and acquire new stock from the Basilisk Isles * 287AA - The simultaneous sieges of Sathar and Kasath by a Ghiscari army of sellswords and slave warriors following growing tensions regarding trade through Kasath and Hazdahn Mo result in the disorganisation of commerce throughout the Kingdom of Sarnor. Whilst the cities are eventually delivered from their beleaguers by armies from Gornath-by-the-Lake and Sarnath, the effects of the blockade of the City of Caravans remains felt to present day. * 288AA - The Burning of the Skahazadhan. In response to the huge Ghiscari-funded army of sellswords and slave warriors marching north in an attempt to sack Kasath and Sathar a year previously, the High-King of Sarnath leads the counter-attack personally, bringing with him an army numbering near forty thousand, including eight thousand chariots. They ravage the cities of Mareekai, Ghardaq and Hesh, but cannot break the defences of Meereen. Sacking Hazdahn Mo on their return to Sarnor, they leave a wake of devastation and death. * 297AA - The Slave Revolts of Grazdan the Golden is the most recent in a number of attempted slave revolts, and by far the most successful. Started by a slave in training to made into an Unsullied, 'Grazdan' rallied his brothers in arms to rise up against their masters, quickly liberating thousands of slaves throughout the city. Swarming through the Plaza of Pain, they are joined by a number of pitfighters, who then set the Plaza of Punishment ablaze, granting mercy to those slaves too weak to save. With the City Watch primarily made of slaves, Grazdan and his liberated army march free from Astapor without interruption and go on to start similar uprisings in Yunkai and Meereen. For five moons, the followers of Grazdan the Golden swell in number to nearly twenty-thousand, before they are set upon by a sellsword army hired by the Masters. Two-fifths are slaughtered, the vast remaining resubjugated, but Grazdan's body is never recovered, leading many of the recaptured slaves to speculate that one day, maybe, he may return to free them once more. Category:Yunkai Category:Slaver's Bay Category:City Category:Essos Category:Ghiscar Category:Ghiscari